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Fiction

The Lure Of The Underground

A Vintage Poster Story

Mark Starlin
3 min readAug 11, 2019

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Wall photo: Pete Willis • Poster: Public Domain • Edited by Mark Starlin

Initially, the London Underground was a flop. People were afraid of going down in the “caves,” as they called them.

“Surely there will be rats or bats or monsters down there.” — Londoner

“I would much rather ride on the surface where I can see monsters approaching.” — Londoner

It didn’t help that the rail company was using steam locomotives, which filled the tunnels with smoke and soot. Passengers frequently collapsed whilst traveling due to the toxic air conditions.

Emerson Farnsworth Tube III, Mayor of London, declared that modernizing was in order, and promptly ordered new trains that ran on electricity.

It did little good. Passengers were now scared they would be electrocuted.

“I’ll not be getting shocked to death down there, of that you can be certain. It’s a good ole double-decker coach for me.” — Londoner

“It will be nothing but trouble, I tell ya. Monsters feed off of electricity. Everyone knows…

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Mark Starlin
Mark Starlin

Written by Mark Starlin

Old bones. Young heart. Uniquely arranged words.

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